1 Week Stay At Raffles Dubai- A travel agents review of the hotel

The now prestigious Raffles Hotel and Resorts chain began its story with the opening of the original Raffles Hotel in Singapore in 1887. Since then, Raffles has expanded into 17 locations across the globe, including Paris, Seychelles, the Maldives, and India, with a number more developments planned for the coming years. 

Raffles, Dubai was completed in 2007 and was the first Raffles Hotel to be opened outside of Asia. Since then Raffles, Dubai has managed to retain its 5-star status, despite the rapidly increasing competition from the estimated 700 other hotels now spread out across the Emirate. Uniquely identifiable by its 19 stories pyramid-shaped structure, the hotel is ideally situated just 10 minutes from Dubai International Airport and is directly joined to the WAFI Mall, offering a mix of luxury and high street retail, a traditional souk marketplace, cinema, and a range of eateries.

I had the pleasure of staying at Raffles Dubai for a week during my holiday in Dubai. My review of Raffles Dubai will provide you with an impartial and comprehensive perspective of the property if you are considering booking a Dubai holiday at the Raffles Hotel. Whilst many leisure travelers will have their sights set on one of the beach resorts in Jumeirah or on the Palm Island, staying in the city does have many advantages. Dubai has a handful of Uber luxury city hotels, and Raffles Dubai is most definitely on this list. So, if you are looking at booking a city break in Dubai, intend on staying at one of the city’s most luxurious properties, and have shortlisted the Raffles Dubai for your stay, this review is for you!

On arrival at Raffles, you are greeted with its lavish and expansive lobby, impressively decorated to match the Egyptian theme of the building, with its elegant water feature and beautiful flowers. 

Photo credit to https://www.raffles.com/

The Raffles Hotel in Dubai is known for its generous room sizes as standard, with their signature rooms covering 70 square meters. Entering the rooms you find a short hallway, off of which sits a large marble bathroom with his and her sinks, a corner bathtub, separate shower room, and WC. Opposite this is a sizeable walk-in wardrobe with hanging space, drawers, and a floor-to-ceiling mirror. Continuing into the room you will find a king-sized bed, dressing table, and a sofa, desk, and TV area. Amenities in the room are everything you would expect, with a fridge, coffee machine and kettle, iron and board, and hairdryer. The blackout blinds operated by the switch next to the bed, coupled with the most comfortable mattress and luxury bedding make for the most wonderful night’s sleep. All rooms come with a balcony overlooking the beautiful pool, with the impressive downtown Dubai skyline on the horizon. These balconies are ample in size with seating and coffee table, to be enjoyed in the mornings and evenings when cooler, or to sunbathe on during the day if you so wish.

Photo credit to https://www.raffles.com/

If you want to keep up with your fitness during your holiday in Dubai, the onsite gym opens from 7 am through until 9 pm, and first thing in the morning when it is cool is the best time to take advantage. Equipment here is ample with two lots of treadmills, exercise bikes and cross trainers, a handful of weights machines, and a matted area with free weights. Another option to start the day if you wish is to use the outdoor pool for swimming before it gets busy with guests. The pool opens at 8 am and at 22 meters long is more than sufficient for swimming some lengths to get the day going.

By now, next on your morning agenda will undoubtedly be breakfast. Breakfast is served in the Azur Restaurant on the 3rd floor. Here you can choose to eat inside the spacious dining room or outside on the terrace, which faces the Raffles Garden and children’s play area. Seating is plentiful and the restaurant only really becomes busy after 09:30, but even then does not feel overcrowded. Each morning the wonderful restaurant staff will seat you and ask for your drinks order, offering everything from a wide range of fruit juices to any tea or coffee option you could wish for. The food offering here is nothing short of magnificent and caters to any and all taste buds and diets. From traditional plates filled with humus, cheeses, sliced meats, and nuts, to fresh fruit and yogurts, cereals, and porridges. The bakery section is vast, with bread and cakes of all descriptions (because if you can’t have a strawberry donut at nine o clock in the morning on holiday, when can you!), including the most delicious Arabic pitta bread and sourdough. The hot selection presents everything you would want from a cooked breakfast and your choice of eggs will be cooked to order and brought to you once prepared. Amongst all of this magnificence is the pancake and waffle area, where delicious sensations can be ordered and customized, accompanied with all your favorite syrups, sweets, and chocolate.

After breakfast, the rest of your day will likely be spent around the pool area. By now the sun will be beating down and the pool bar will be open for business. The Raffles pool is large enough to cater to all, with plenty of sun loungers and parasols to take a break from the rays every now and then. Along with the main pool, there is a small, heated plunge pool, a larger than normal jacuzzi, and a shallow baby pool, which is conveniently half-shaded for the majority of the day. The swim-up pool bar is perfect for refreshments all day, with a light lunch and snack menu on offer. During my stay, I found the service could be a little slow but, as drinks and food are brought to your lounger, you can at least wait in comfort. Music plays through speakers at a comfortable volume and towels are swapped for fresh ones throughout the day.

If you prefer having lunch away from the pool area, Raffles’ beautiful lobby provides the perfect place to have a bite to eat out and a break from the sun. The Salon, as it is called, actually offers food all day, from breakfast up until 11:30 am and then lunch and dinner right through until 11:30 pm. The menu is huge, from salads, soups, and sandwiches, to all manner of pasta, pizza, meat, and fish options. The atmosphere is very calm and tranquil, so a great change from the pool if you would like. 

As mentioned above, Raffles is directly linked to the WAFI Mall, for shopping, cinema, and restaurants. If you are looking to explore further afield the Dubai Metro is right on your doorstep, with the Healthcare City station a short 3-minute walk from the hotel. From here you are easily able to reach great places, such as the Dubai Mall/Burj Khalifa, The  Dubai Palm, and Dubai Marina.  

If you would rather stay closer to home a fantastic option for an evening of dinner and drinks can be found in the hotel itself. TOMO is a swanky Japanese restaurant located on the 17th floor of Raffles. The food and cocktails are fantastic and the view from the terrace out across Dubai is just sublime. It is a must-visit, even if just for a few drinks before going elsewhere, or as a final nightcap. 

Synonymous with the Raffles brand is the exquisite customer service, and that is seen in abundance in Dubai. From the reception through to the restaurant and bar staff, pool and housekeeping, all interactions are so friendly, warm, and helpful from the beginning to end. This coupled with the hotel itself makes for a luxury holiday of a lifetime, and a hotel that you will want to visit again and again.